Sports News Roundup: Twins plan to retire Mauer’s No. 7; NBA fines Raptors coach Nurse $15K for criticizing refs

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

NBA fines Raptors coach Nurse $15K for criticizing refs

The NBA fined Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse $15,000 on Tuesday in the wake of his public criticism of the officials following Sunday's loss to the Denver Nuggets. Nurse said it was "ridiculous" that Raptors star Kawhi Leonard went to the free throw line just four times in the 95-86 loss to the Nuggets.

Reports: Yankees hire Beltran as special assistant to GM

Former nine-time All-Star Carlos Beltran is poised to join the New York Yankees as a special assistant to general manager Brian Cashman, MLB.com and Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported on Tuesday. Beltran, who played with the Yankees from 2014-16, is expected to play a role in the recruitment of superstar free agent Manny Machado, according to the reports.

Hawks G Bazemore fined for bouncing ball into stands

The NBA has fined Atlanta Hawks guard Kent Bazemore $10,000 for bouncing the ball into the stands during Sunday night's loss at Brooklyn. The punishment was announced Tuesday by Kiki VanDeWeghe, the league's executive vice president of basketball operations.

Suns waive Rivers, Wiz make G-League call-up following trade

The Phoenix Suns and Washington Wizards finally got the Trevor Ariza trade done on Monday, but the two teams weren't done tinkering with their rosters. The biggest reported move actually happened late Monday night, with multiple outlets reporting the Suns are waiving guard Austin Rivers. The Wizards sent Rivers and forward Kelly Oubre to Phoenix in exchange for guard/forward Trevor Ariza.

Redskins S Nicholson arrested, charged with assault

Washington Redskins safety Montae Nicholson has been charged with assault and battery as well as being drunk in public, according to multiple reports. According to a report by the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office in Virginia, deputies were called to a local retail and residential development around 2 a.m. Tuesday morning to break up a fight. They found two victims, a man and a woman, who were reportedly assaulted by Nicholson, 23, and 24-year-old Sydney A. Maggiore.

MJ tops trio of sports figures on Forbes' wealthiest celebs list

Forbes released its list of America's 10 wealthiest celebrities on Tuesday, and sprinkled in with the directors and media moguls are a trio of names sports fans will easily recognize. Though his Charlotte Hornets are 29th in Forbes' list of NBA franchise values, owner Michael Jordan is the highest-rated sports figure on the list at No. 4. According to Forbes, MJ's net worth is $1.7 billion, up $300 million from 2017. According to Forbes, Jordan's worth is primarily "derived from his sneaker fortune and a 90% stake in the increasingly valuable Charlotte Hornets. His stake in the basketball team is valued at an estimated $800 million."

Panthers S Reid hit with another random drug test

Carolina Panthers safety Eric Reid late Monday tweeted out a notice from the NFL of yet another drug test, his seventh in 11 weeks with the team. "Number 7 ... ‘Random,'" Reid tweeted after the Panthers' game against the New Orleans Saints, a 12-9 loss.

United run out of patience with Mourinho, Pochettino in the frame

Jose Mourinho's relationship with Manchester United reached irretrievable breakdown a long time ago but the Old Trafford hierarchy finally served the divorce papers on Tuesday as the world's biggest club sacked the game's most famous manager. The decision came with United having labored to their worst start for 28 years playing dull, defense-minded football, with Mourinho cutting an ever-angrier figure after each setback, and Sunday's 3-1 loss at Liverpool was one humiliation too far.

Twins plan to retire Mauer’s No. 7

The Minnesota Twins on Tuesday announced that they will retire Joe Mauer's number sometime during the 2019 season. Mauer's No. 7 will be the eighth in club history to be retired, joining Harmon Killebrew (No. 3), Rod Carew (No. 29), Tony Oliva (No. 6), Kent Hrbek (No. 14), Kirby Puckett (No. 34), Bert Blyleven (No. 28), and Tom Kelly (No. 10).

Rivera: 'Glimmer' of hope remains for Panthers' Newton, postseason

Carolina head coach Ron Rivera said Tuesday he was holding a "slim glimmer" of hope the Panthers would make the playoffs and that quarterback Cam Newton would lead them into the postseason despite an obvious sore shoulder "Believe it or not there's still a slim glimmer so we'll see," said Rivera. "Again, we'll continue to focus in on playing football and we got Atlanta coming to town and all intents and purposes, we play to win."

(With inputs from Reuters)

(With inputs from agencies.)